Somewhere between midnight and dawn… it rained.
Not with water—but with ash.
Grey flakes drifted from the skies above the ruined sanctum, silent and uninvited. The group huddled close under the crumbled archways, Jiwoon asleep in Vera's lap, his body faintly warm.
Kaelya watched the ash fall. "It's the third time this week. Same pattern."
Kravein wiped his blade clean, crouching nearby. "Residual memory storm," he muttered. "The world's reacting to him."
"You say that like he's not even human."
Kravein looked up. "Right now… he's not."
Vera didn't speak. Her hand gently moved across Jiwoon's brow, wiping away the ash, as if shielding him from a world he once ruled.
Then—
BOOM.
A tremor shook the ridge. Qilin's head snapped up, nostrils flaring.
From the valley below… black mist surged.
⸻
System Message Appears
"Threat Detected: SIN-CLONE PROTOCOL BREACHED"
"Warning: Fragmented version of Executor detected nearby."
"Probability of Hostile Manifestation: 94%"
⸻
Kaelya read the message. Her hand gripped her blade.
"You've gotta be kidding me. Is that…?"
"Yes," Kravein growled. "It's him."
A version of him.
A Sin Clone—a remnant born from the overflow of Jiwoon's corrupted memories during the last transformation. Equal in form… twisted in will.
From the darkness came another Jiwoon—but older. Laughing.
His eyes were pure black.
"Well well… the little god sleeps," the clone sneered, stepping out from the mist. "Maybe I should put him to bed permanently."
Kravein moved first, launching himself down the slope with blinding speed. His blade clashed with the clone's arm—metal on shadow.
The force split the ground.
Vera tucked Jiwoon protectively against her chest. "Don't let him near!"
Kaelya fired binding glyphs, but the clone shattered them with a wave.
"Funny," he said. "You used to command hell. Now look at you. Cradled in mortal arms."
"Enough!" Kravein's fist struck the clone's jaw—sending him flying back into the ash field.
But the clone only laughed.
"You think you're protecting him from me? I am him. I'm what's left when the guilt gets burned away."
⸻
In that moment, Jiwoon stirred.
Still a child, but his eyes opened—golden, glowing, and ancient.
"Stop hurting my family," he whispered.
The clone froze. Just for a second.
A divine aura erupted from Jiwoon's tiny frame. His shadow warped—and for a split second, wings of light flared behind him.
The clone screamed, as if stabbed by something unseen, and vanished into mist.
Silence.
Jiwoon collapsed once again, unconscious.
Everyone was breathless.
Kravein stared at the scorch mark left behind. "He didn't even move…"
Kaelya whispered, "He's still in there."
Vera, smiling faintly, cradled him tighter.
"No," she said.
"He never left."